ONE problem with renewable energy is that neither the wind nor the sun is reliable. That cannot, however, be said of the tides.
The Newtonian clockwork of sun and Moon can always be relied on. The problem with exploiting tidal power has, rather, been finding places to do it efficiently: bays or estuaries with a suitable tidal reach and a topography that permits a barrage to be constructed. Only then, with established designs, can turbines be installed through which the tide can ebb and flow.
That would change, though, if turbines could simply be attached to the sea floor. And several firms are trying to make it so. Some, such as Andritz Hydro Hammerfest, in Norway, and Marine Current Turbines from Bristol, in Britain, take the relatively simple approach of sticking what are little more than strengthened wind turbines onto the seabed.
In the case of such turbines, though, bigger is better. And, since a turbine is not much use if its blades stick above the surface, that means they need to be located in reasonably deep water. Which is a shame, because a lot of otherwise-suitable sites are too shallow.
Not all wind turbines work this way, though. Some smaller ones are skeletal cylindrical structures whose axes of rotation are at right-angles to the direction of the wind, rather than aligned with it. And that, with the important modification that this axis is horizontal rather than vertical, is the basis for several novel designs for tidal-power generators which can operate in shallow water too.
Engineers at Ocean Renewable Power Company, in Portland, Maine, and Kepler Energy, in London, both use this approach. And Ocean Renewable is starting to commercialise it. In September 2012 its TidGen generator was deployed in the Gulf of Maine. It thus became the first plant to deliver offshore-generated power of any kind (wind, wave or tidal) to an American electricity grid.
Kepler is a little behind, but is hoping to try out a full-scale version of its Transverse Horizontal Axis Water Turbine in the Bristol Channel soon. Its engineers’ calculations suggest this device will generate 50% more power from a given tidal stream that a conventional turbine can manage.
The Latest Bing News on:
Tidal power
- Group pitches idled Annapolis Royal tidal station as world-class climate change research centreon January 21, 2021 at 11:07 am
An ad hoc coalition is advocating for Nova Scotia Power’s idled Annapolis Tidal Generating Station to be transformed into a world-class climate change and ecological research centre. Representatives o ...
- Tidal Energy Market May See a Big Move : Major Giants Tenax Energy, Atlantis Resources, Aquamarine Poweron January 20, 2021 at 10:35 am
Stay up-to-date with Tidal Energy Market research offered by HTF MI. Check how key trends and emerging drivers are shaping this industry growth.
- Biden and Harris Highlight TidalWave's Political Power Comicson January 19, 2021 at 4:38 pm
TidalWave Productions is marking the inaugurations of President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris with new Political Power biographies.
- Global Marine Power (Wave and Tidal) Market 2020 Key Segments and Sub-Segments, Key Drivers, Restraints, Opportunities and Challenges by 2025on January 19, 2021 at 6:52 am
The latest report entitled Global Marine Power (Wave and Tidal) Market 2020 by Manufacturers, Type and Application, Forecast to 2025 firstly focuses on some important aspects of the market such as ...
- First Batch of World's Largest Tidal-Flat 300MW Utility PV Plant Successfully Connected To the Gridon January 19, 2021 at 5:55 am
The first batch of units of world's largest tidal-flat utility PV plant, contracted by the SINOHYDRO BUREAU 12 CO.,LTD, have been successfully connected to the grid ...
- Tidal Energy Market 2021: spectator steady growth by 2025 according to Expert Reviews, Product Profitability, Technology Advancement & Analysison January 19, 2021 at 2:21 am
Tidal Energy Market 2021: spectator steady growth by 2025 according to Expert Reviews, Product Profitability, Technology Advancement & Analysis Jan 18, 2021 4:28 PM ET
- 300MW tidal flat solar project takes shape in Chinaon January 18, 2021 at 4:49 am
The first tranches of a 300MW utility-scale solar project built on a coastal tidal flat in China have been connected to the grid.
- QED Naval acquires Dutch tidal power projecton January 15, 2021 at 3:17 am
Edinburgh based marine renewables specialist QED Naval is expanding its plans to disrupt the energy sector with its environmentally friendly sustainable tidal solution following the acquisition, ...
- NREL: Saying Yes to Water Power Success: NREL Project Standouts in WPTO Accomplishments Reporton January 15, 2021 at 3:04 am
Water Power Technologies Office (WPTO) published their 2019–2020 Accomplishments Report. Encapsulating significant outcomes from both ...
- Tidal flats in eastern China to host 300 MW of solaron January 15, 2021 at 1:31 am
Developers have already connected 3 MW of capacity in what is purportedly destined to be the world’s largest PV array on a coastal tidal flat. The project, which is particularly challenging due to ...
The Latest Google Headlines on:
Tidal power
The Latest Bing News on:
Tidal-power generators
- Is a Microgrid Right for You?on January 21, 2021 at 2:46 pm
A microgrid is a discrete energy system consisting of distributed energy resources, such as solar panels, wind turbines, backup generators, and battery storage systems, and loads capable of ...
- Gravity-Powered Generator: Real Or Fake?on January 20, 2021 at 4:00 pm
It’s likely that you’ve already seen the photos of Brazilian energy group RAR Energia’s generator “powered exclusively by gravity” (translated). If you’re rolling your eyes and ...
- QED Naval acquires Dutch tidal power projecton January 15, 2021 at 3:17 am
Edinburgh based marine renewables specialist QED Naval is expanding its plans to disrupt the energy sector with its environmentally friendly sustainable tidal solution following the acquisition, ...
- Scottish marine firm launches crowdfunderon January 13, 2021 at 2:27 am
Edinburgh-based marine renewables specialist QED Naval has launched its first crowdfunding campaign on the Seedrs platform The funding will assist further develop existing sites and to secure ...
- Sea the green poweron January 12, 2021 at 3:59 pm
Since then a number of tidal power stations have been constructed. These power stations have mostly installed bulb type turbines along generator, similar to that of hydroelectric power station.
- Tech File: H-Glide Structural Bearings for Extreme Environson January 12, 2021 at 12:20 pm
Energy structures, including wind, wave and tidal power generators. “This type of composite bearing does not require lubrication, which minimizes disruption to processes,” said Booty.
- Tech File: H-Glide Structural Bearings for Extreme Environson January 12, 2021 at 12:10 pm
Custom-fabricated structural bearings are being introduced by Hercules Engineering for extremely high stress applications in structures requiring outstanding load-bearing performance, even in compact ...
- 2020: A Year of Reckoning for Competitive Generatorson January 2, 2021 at 8:02 pm
Over the past year, power generators that depend on wholesale electricity markets for the bulk of their revenues endured remarkable pressure stemming from the pandemic, changing company business ...
- Japan set to start its 1st tidal power turbine test run in Feb. 2021on December 31, 2020 at 7:27 pm
For this reason, the ministry will be using a turbine produced by a British firm already making commercial tidal power turbines. The 25-meter-tall, 500-kilowatt test generator -- which is ...
- Gas Extraction Newson December 15, 2020 at 4:00 pm
Whether in the drives of ship propellers, mobile platforms such as drilling platforms for oil and gas extraction, or also in tidal power plants – the areas of application for disk pack couplings ...